Ryoma's Dilemma
by bbZuSh
Summary: Everyone thought that Ryoma was an only child, pampered by all. But nobody's not so sure anymore when someone of the same name comes to school and starting to tease him... or is it only one person?
1. The arrival of the annoying guy

**Hello! This is my first fanfic :) Please R&R so that I can improve. Thanks!**

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Ryoma sat on the bench, wondering how to announce the terrible news to his senpais. They were going to be surprised, if not shocked! He could almost see their faces, jaws wide open and their eyes as big as those of a goldfish. He let out a sigh. This was going to be a really difficult day.

"Okay everyone, gather up."

Ryuzaki-sensei has just entered the court along with Tezuka. All the members of the tennis club gathered up quickly, not wanting to neither see the anger of the woman nor run laps because of their captain. Though kind and friendly, she was really strict when it came to discipline and training.

All the members of the tennis club she was really strict when it came to discipline and training.

"I have some news to tell you. We are going …"

She was interrupted by the sound of the gates being opened again. The creaking sound made the coach think that it was high time to do something about that, but now was not appropriate. She had to present the new boy who had just entered on the court to the other members of her club.

"You're late!"

"Gomen, Sumire-chan but I had… errr… some sort of accident. I got lost."

"How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that?!"

But the boy had already walked past her and was now walking towards the youngest of their regulars. _What would she do about him? _She sighed. During her whole career, she had had to deal with that family of idiots and she guessed, it was not to be over soon.

"Hey midget! Funny to see you here. Didn't they tell you that you were too short to join this club?"

_Calm down, Ryoma. Calm down. You are not to lose you temper because of him. _Ryoma simply lowered his cap and mentally tried to ignore the presence of what represented the devil himself.

"Yes, I was saying. We are going to have a new member as from today. Everyone, I would like to present you to Echizen Ryoma."

"Hi everyone! Please take care of me."

Silence.

Their reactions were just as Ryoma had expected. Everyone had that stupid expression of shock on their faces. What was even more embarrassing, instead of welcoming the newcomer, they were all watching Ryoma, as if waiting for some explanations but of course didn't get any.

Practice started and everyone could see that the new guy didn't only have the same name as the freshman but was as talented as him when it came to tennis. Due to Inui's special menu, they didn't have a single minute to talk but for being a newbie, he sure didn't get caught into Inui's trap; having to drink the Inui juice if ever a mistake was committed. He had been able to run all those laps and had finished at the same time of the regulars and had also been able to return every ball that had been thrown to him.

Inui was always looking for guinea pigs to test his new concoctions and it wasn't that the tennis club lacked any. He always found someone… He had thought that the new guy was interesting and would have made a nice victim but again, he was too cunning for that. He knew exactly what was expected of him and what would happen if he didn't live up to it.

Everyone went back to the changing rooms, relieved that practice was finally over and they could now have some spare time for themselves. And also, they could get their freshman to spill up the beans about the newcomer. They had seemed to know each other.

"O-chibi, do you know the new member? Related to him? Inui, do you know anything?" Eiji asked.

They had all finished changing and were now sitting a bit to rest. Ryoma made as if he didn't hear anything and continued to play with the strings of his racquet.

"This is interesting. It doesn't reside in my data. This could prove to be real precious information." Inui was looking at Ryoma, waiting for some reply.

Tezuka still hadn't come back. He had been asked to stay behind by Ryuzaki-sensei and so had the newcomer. He should know something, given that he was the captain. As for Fuji, no one would really say what he was thinking for that ever-lasting smile on his face didn't really tell much about him. Kaidoh was leaning against the wall, 'Fssshhing' as always. He had played against the new guy today and had lost against him. He acknowledged him as an Echizen but still wanted to know who he was really. As for Oishi and Kawamura, they were throwing worried looks at everyone.

Momo couldn't take it anymore.

"Echizen! Come on, tell us who he is. And don't you say you don't know him. You have the same name and you even look alike!"

True enough, the two Echizen Ryoma's resembled a lot. Those same golden eyes, that same dark hair, that same arrogance surrounding them and yes, that same talent for tennis. The only difference was the difference in height. The older Ryoma who was in his third year of junior high at Seigaku was about the same height as Tezuka and the freshman was well… really… really… short. In brief, it could be said that he was an older version of Ryoma.

"Never seen him."

"Now now, don't be such a brat, tell us!"

"Midget! Don't you dare go without me. I still don't know the way home."

Ryoma's nightmare had just joined the group along with Tezuka. He guessed he wouldn't be able to hide anything now that the big mouth in person will tell everyone. _But why didn't I want them to know? I guess I didn't want to be linked with that guy's stupidity…_

"Then you shouldn't come with me. With some luck, you'll get lost and I'll never see you face again."

"What did you say, midget? Little Dwarf!"

He was now pulling the little boy's cheek under the amazed eyes of the others.

"A dwarf is already little, baka! Leave me alone!"

"Ano… Echizen-san, but could you tell us how you are related to Echizen?"

Oishi, the mother hen of the club couldn't really allow two members to fight with each others, not that anyone would be hurt in this case. He only wanted to know the truth really soon. He had imagined the worst. Maybe he was the son of the mistress of Ryoma's father or he was someone who wanted to be known as The Echizen Ryoma or …

"Oh! The little dwarf didn't tell you? Should have known it!" he said, letting go of Ryoma to turn to the others. "I'm his older brother."

"Ehhhhhhhhh! Older brother?! O-chibi you had an older brother?!"

"Echizen, why didn't you tell us anything?"

"Fsshhh…"

"Hmmmm… maybe you could tell us about Echizen when he was younger. This would be real good data."

"You can come at my sushi shop at any time. You'll get free sushi!"

"Are you the son of Echizen's father's mistress?"

"Eh?! Erm no. We share the same father and mother, though the midget doesn't want to accept it."

Fuji turned to Tezuka.

"Did you know about it?"

"Yes, Ryuzaki told me before practice."

It was already late enough, so everyone went back home, listening to what Ryo-nii had to tell about his younger brother and the latter hiding his face under his cap. He was already part of the group now and all Ryoma could do was bear with his company. It wasn't that he hated his older brother but he hated his stupidity and the fact that he always was teasing him.

When they reached home, they were greeted by the sound of balls being hit on the court. Only two persons who could play tennis could be home at that time and the two boys rushed to the court knowing already knowing what scene they were about to see; that of a girl with really long dark hair and golden eyes playing Echizen Nanjirou.


	2. The arrival of the devilish girl

**This chapter can prove to be quite confusing, concerning the names. Please bear with it :)**

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She was young. She was beautiful. She was intelligent. But most of all, she was fed up with those two idiots fighting.

"Say midget. Do you think a law could be passed stating that little boys below 155 cm shouldn't be allowed to walk in public?"

The silent spectator she had been couldn't bear it anymore. Every word that came through their mouths irritated her. And to think she was going to be stuck with them here until she would graduate from high school. She hadn't wanted to come to Japan at all. Living in the States was better she thought. She didn't like changes. She didn't like them at all. She was already used to life there, and now, she had been 'convinced' by her father to come here. Yeah, blackmailed would have been a better word.

"Say you two. Do you think a law could be passed saying that people with your level of stupidity shouldn't be allowed to walk in public?"

Both boys turned to look at the young girl behind them. She hadn't said a single word ever since she left the house, not that they had expected her to. But to hear these words coming from her, this sure was NOT a very good sign. Behind those glasses, fiery eyes were looking at them. She was angry, yes, she was really angry. She was suffering from the jet lag, hadn't had a good night sleep, wasn't what we would call a morning person AND they had angered her. They hated to admit it, but they were quite afraid of her. Most people wouldn't understand why, but they knew what she was really capable of.

As they approached the school, she wondered how she would get rid of those two. Knowing Ryo-nii, he would tag along with her until the bell rang for the first period. She had to go to the Principal's office and it HAD to be without him. She, after all, had to negotiate… so that a stupid and idiotic fool wouldn't be in the same class as her.

At that same moment, a redhead appeared out of nowhere, calling the two boys.

"Hoi Hoi! Echizen, O-chibi! Tezuka says we have to meet on the courts. Something to do with the tournament…"

_Arigato Kami-sama_. Luck was at last on her side. As she was turning to go to the main building, Ryo-nii of course, had to stop her. Somehow he always seemed to follow her wherever she went and practically couldn't live without her. 'The magical bond between twins" as he called it. _Some sister complex_, she thought but then she could understand that he was worried after her.

"Eh? You are not coming with us? I'm sure the captain wouldn't mi- "

A cold stare was more than enough to make the boy understand she had absolutely no idea to accompany him.

"See ya later then."

Without even replying, she went her way, ignoring that the redhead had just asked Ryo-nii if she were her girlfriend. _Who would want to date that guy?!_

The meeting with the Principal went pretty well. He seemed to understand the situation and even agreed to give them different classes. Though Ryo-nii had come to school the day before, he had not yet been assigned with a class. He was just given a tour of the school and was allowed to have club activities so that he could make friends easily. As for her, she hadn't come because she was too tired to even get up.

She made her way to her class quite satisfied. She had been given Class 3 – 1 and Ryo-nii Class 3 – 6. He would definitely have a shock when hearing that. He had taken it for granted that they would be together. Little did he know that some secret meeting had taken place to deprive him of this wish of his. But then, he deserved it. The last time they were in the same class, they ended up getting detentions every week because of someone really talkative. She wanted to keep a clear record this time… or at least try to.

"Why didn't you tell me?!"

She looked at her brother who had jumped in front of her.

"We aren't in the same class. Do you realise? I am in 3 – 6, at the very end there and you are here. Do you know how much time it takes to come here? 3 minutes! 3!"

"So?"

"I won't ge- Wait! Don't tell me… You are mean! Inhuman! It's over. Not gonna talk to you again. O-V-E-R."

He was taking it quite well, she thought. He didn't wish for her death. He didn't treat her of insects' names. He didn't call her the icy creature. She wasn't told she had no heart. He took it very well indeed.

"Interesting. Now if you'll just let me pass…"

With those words, she left a completely depressed Ryo-nii, whom she knew would get over it real soon and went inside her class where the teacher was already waiting for her. During the small time that her brother had taken to throw such compliments at her, the bell had already rung and here she was, late for her first class. This guy had to be the most troublesome person ever…

"Students, I would like to introduce you to the new transfer student, Echizen Ryoma. I hope that every one would be nice to her and that you will help her to get used to this school."

A nod from her and the introduction was already over. She was seated besides a certain Tezuka in whose eyes she had seen a flicker of interest when her name had been mentioned. He had tried to hide his reaction and to the eyes of others, maybe had managed to do it. But no one could fool her. No one. The only cause for this interest would be he knew at least one of her brothers, a really valid reason not to talk to him. As class started, she forgot all about the idiots and diverted all her attention on the teacher's voice. History class had always been one of her favourites.

3…

2…

1…

"Ryo-chan! It's been such a long time since I saw you! Come, give onii-chan a big hug . "

Sure enough, he did take 3 minutes, no more, no less, to come into the class, at least giving her the time to prepare herself for his stupidities.

"Who are you?"

The change on the boy's face was radical. He went from a really bright and energetic Ryo-nii to a really depressed one. With her brother still sulking and sitting on the floor, she sat down and took out a paper from her bag. It was the dreaded option form that she had to return at the end of school to let the administration know about what club she would get into.

She stared at that piece of paper on her desk, with her pen in her hand. Sports' clubs were out of question and before, these had always been her choice. Among the ones that were left, only the Music Club seemed interesting but then, she wasn't seeing herself joining that club. She liked music; she even played violin and piano, sang a little sometime but still… tennis was even more interesting…

"Ne Ryo-chan? What are you doing?"

A little head had appeared from under the table and was looking at her with little puppy eyes. She hated to admit it, but she never could resist him when he did that. Of course, she never showed it, he would just be taking advantage of her and making her his slave.

"Choosing a club…"

The boy knew what his sister was thinking, that no club was worth the tennis club. He always wanted to keep his siblings happy, even the midget, so he started working his brains to find a solution.

"Idea!!! We could ask Sumire-chan if you could join the Boy's Tennis Club. I'm sure she'll agree, and besides, she already knows…"

Without giving his sister time to even react to what he had just said, he was already off to find 'Sumire-chan'.

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**I'll be using Ryo-nii for the elder brother, Ryo-nee for the elder-sister and Ryoma... for... Ryoma .  
**


	3. Talents? Or not?

Ryoma raised his head instinctively as he heard steps, regretting it as he saw who was approaching. Those twins would surely give him a heart attack someday, he was sure of it. In front of him was his worst nightmare, his brother and sister, both in sportswear and both towering him.

_Wait a minute! What is Ryo-nee doing here, wearing those clothes? She's not even allowed to…_

"Midget! Guess what? Ryo-chan's gonna be in the same club as us. Isn't that great?"

_Of course, an idiot had to interrupt him even when he was thinking… Wait… What did he say?!_

"Eh?! Wh-wh-what did you say?!"

Before his brother even had time to reply, somebody else did.

"I think you heard him the first time, Ryoma."

Her cold stare made him shiver. This was not good. No, not good at all. He looked at her again, seeing no change in her expression. She was definitely thinking about something…

"What?"

"Nothing really. Was just thinking how they could have allowed a person of such height on the regulars' team."

In these words, she went to see Ryuzaki-sensei who was waving at them, leaving two dumbfounded Ryomas behind.

"Did she just say what I thought I just heard her say?"

Unable to say anything, Ryoma simply nodded, trying to believe it himself. This was not unusual for she had this habit of teasing both of them, in that curious tone of hers, but everytime she did that, she caught them off balance. With her, you never knew what she was about to say or do. Really not good for the heart…

A few moments later, they were standing inside the courts. In front were Ryuzaki-sensei, Tezuka and Ryo-nee who was about to be introduced to the rest of the team. Surely, they were finding this strange that a girl was here for usually, the only female factor that could be found was the coach… well… not that she could be really counted as one :P

"Boys, I would like to present you to Echizen Ryoma. She'll be joining us from now on and I hope that no discrimination would take place because she is a girl. I'm warning you."

Turning to Ryo-nee, she continued, "Ryo-chan, this is Tezuka, the captain of the team, Oishi, the vice-captain, Fuji, Eiji, Momo, …. "

As soon as the introductions were completed, Tezuka started giving instruction for today's session.

"Okay everyone, 30 laps around the court. The ones who arrive last would have to drink Inui's juice."

Ryo-nee started running as well, not wanting to be left behind by the others. After some 10 laps, she started panting heavily. _Damn, now is not the time to feel tired. _Even though she wanted to continue to run, she felt her legs give away and she had to hold on to the fencing so as not to fall down. She couldn't see her brother anywhere and cursed herself for that. The only time he wasn't near her was when she needed her the most. Nobody has noticed yet that she had stopped and she took this moment to slide on the nearest bench.

"Are you okay?"

"Ryuzaki-sensei. Yes, I'm gonna be fine. Just a bit tired, I think."

"Geez you shouldn't be pushing yourself too much, you know that."

"Yes."

The others had finished their warming up and were now gathering in front of Ryuzaki-sensei, waiting for their next instructions. Today, they would be having single matches to prepare themselves for the next tournaments to come. Ryo-nii was playing against Ryoma, Fuji against Oishi, Tezuka against Momo, Kaido against Taka-san, Eiji was up against Inui and to everyone's surprise, Ryo-nee was playing Akai.

"Ehhh? Why is she playing Akai?" I'm sure she'd beat him in no time. After all, she's Echizen's sister."

That was Momo whining because he wanted to see her against one of the regulars to see if she was as good as her brothers. It was rare to find a girl who could play tennis as well as them, so they really wanted to be matched against them.

"Even I want to play against her, Momo"

"Eh, Fuji-senpai, you too?"

"Momo! Fuji! Get on your respective courts, else it'll be 100 laps around the courts."

On hearing Tezuka's voice, Momo quickly got on the courts, waiting to play against his buchou. He'd lose, he already knew it. _Geez, why I am always paired up with him. I always lose._

The match was over quickly and Momo ran quickly to the adjacent court, where Ryo-nee was playing. The Echizen brothers were already there, so were Fuji and Oishi. They watched as the green ball went from one side of the court, to the other… in favour of Akai. He was winning 4 games to love.

"Well, I guess I overestimated her." Fuji said, about to turn to go the changing room.

"Most girls aren't good at sports, nya. I thought she'd play like o-chibi or Ryo." Eiji's loud voice could certainly be heard from where Ryo-nee was standing and she heard that particular sentence about 'girls'. She was an extreme feminist and she hated when people underestimated her just because of her gender. But still, she wasn't allowed to make heavy shots or anything. _This is practice. Control yourself, it is to work out your arms and legs. It's for your own good. _And with these thoughts, the match ended with Akai winning 6 games to 2.

She got out of the tennis court, avoiding the eyes of both brothers for she knew what they were thinking. She made way to the girls changing room, hoping nobody would be there. She didn't particularly want any nosy person ask her why she joined the boys tennis club instead of the girls one. Putting the wet towel on her head, she sat down, the images of the match playing in her head. It could have been really easy to beat the guy. On his first few shots, she had already seen through all his moves and his weaknesses as well. If he wanted to be on the regulars' team any time soon, he had a long way to go,

She went to find her elder brother, after having changed her clothes. He was there, teasing Ryoma as usual, along with the other regulars. She didn't want to go there, for she already knew what they thought of her. That she was just the sister of these two guys, with no special talents of her own. Maybe even, that she played tennis just because they did.

"Nii-chan."

Ryo-nii froze on hearing the voice of his sister. The few times she called him that were when she wasn't feeling well and needed someone to talk to. Else, it was always Idiot, or Stupid, or Brainless Being, things like that.

"Sorry guys, I have to go. Midget, tell Oyaji we'll be late."

Ryoma didn't even have time to reply for his brother had already run towards Ryo-nee and both twins were now walking towards the gates. There were things only his stupid brother could do and that was making his sister feel better. As much as she wanted to hide it, Ryo-nee relied on her brother more than anyone could ever imagine.


End file.
